Soul of the Community

The information in our study covers the State College, Pa., Metropolitan Statistical Area.

In each community, the Soul of the Community Study identified factors that emotionally bond residents to where they live. Some of these community characteristics were rated highly by residents, and are therefore community strengths while others were rated lower, making them opportunities for improvement. This information can provide communities a roadmap for increasing residents’ emotional attachment to where they live, which the study found has a significant relationship to economic vitality.

In the State College area, social offerings (fun places to gather), openness (how welcoming the place is) and aesthetics (an area's physical beauty and green spaces) are the most important factors emotionally connecting residents to where they live.

Aesthetics (particularly the area’s natural setting) and education (particularly local colleges and universities) were perceived as community strengths.

The area’s openness – it’s rated least welcoming for college grads and significantly less welcoming to gays and lesbians in 2009 – needs improvement. So do the social offerings. Though it was rated significantly higher in 2009 as a place to make friends, residents caring about each other remains the lowest-rated aspect of social offerings.

People who are most likely to be emotionally connected to the State College area are older, retired, widowed or married, home-owning and higher-income residents. There was a significant increase in community attachment for higher-educated and upper-middle-income residents. Those least likely to be emotionally connected to the area are ages 35 to 54, divorced, rural-dwelling and lower-income residents.